Methods and systems for detecting prohibited objects

ABSTRACT

A prohibited object detection system detects prohibited objects in an being monitored. An image of an object detected in an area associated with a monitored individual, such as a patient room, is collected, and the system identifies reference points on the object. The system may compare the reference points to reference points of know objects, including objects identified as being prohibited for the monitored individual and/or the facility or area in which the individual is located. The system then determines whether the detected prohibited object is in proximity to the hand of the monitored individual or other person within the monitored area and whether the object is in a position that is consistent with imminent use of the object. One or more designated recipients may be alerted if the object is a prohibited object that is within close proximity and positioned consistently with an imminent use.

BACKGROUND

Care facilities, such as hospitals, face many challenges in addition tosimply caring for patients. For example, securing patients and equipment(e.g., medical devices) consumes many resources, and current methodslack effectiveness. In addition to requiring personnel to physicallymonitor locations within the facility, facilities often use visitorlogs, visitor badges, and radio-frequency identification (RFID)technology to control access to certain locations within the facility.However, each of these solutions require subjective decision-making andare prone to error by the personnel who are monitoring the locations,assisting visitors signing a visitor log, or issuing visitor badges.Further, none of these methods necessarily prevent an otherwiseauthorized visitor from breaching areas of the facility where thevisitor is not specifically authorized. For example, a visitor may beauthorized to visit a particular patient but, based on some condition ofthe patient, may not have close contact with the patient. In contrast, acaregiver of the same patient may need to have close contact with thepatient. In some situations, an authorized visitor may unwittinglyprovide contraband (e.g., some object a particular patient is notallowed) to a patient that the current methods are unable to detect.Additionally, some objects may be considered contraband or present animmediate danger only when being used in a particular manner. Finally,medical devices are constantly being shuffled between patients andlocations within a facility, and tracking the locations of these devicescan be extremely difficult. Accordingly, overall security forindividuals, such as patients, and equipment suffers, and the manyresources currently being utilized for security measures are wasted.

BRIEF SUMMARY

This brief summary is provided as a general overview of the moredetailed disclosure which follows. It is not intended to identify key oressential elements of the disclosure, or to define the claim terms inisolation from the remainder of the disclosure, including the drawings.

This disclosure generally relates to methods, systems, and computerstorage media for detecting prohibited objects within a monitored area.Generally, and without limitation, the monitored area is associated withan individual to be monitored. For instance, if the individual to bemonitored is a patient in a care facility, the monitored area may be apatient room. One or more 3D motion sensors capture image data withinthe monitored area, and the image data is analyzed by a computerizedmonitoring system. The computerized monitoring system identifiesreference points on an object found within at least part of themonitored area and identifies the object by comparing the referencepoints to reference points of known objects. The computerized monitoringsystem then determines whether the object is prohibited. For example,the object may be prohibited for a particular individual, for aparticular area in which the individual is located, or for the entirefacility in which the individual is located. Upon detecting theprohibited object, the computer monitoring system further determineswhether the object is within proximity of at least a hand of a personwithin the monitored area, such as the monitored individual, acaregiver, or a visitor, and determines whether the object is positionedfor imminent use based on at least two reference points of the objects.

One or more designated recipients may be alerted if the prohibitedobject is determined to be proximate a person within the monitored areaand in a position for imminent use. An alerting may be part of analerting protocol initiated by the computerized monitoring system andmay include alerting the monitored individual. In some aspects, afteralerting the monitored individual, additional image data is received andanalyzed to detect whether a corrective action has been or will betaken. If no response indicative of corrective action is provided, analert may be sent from a computerized communication system to one ormore designated recipients, such as a caregiver. In some aspects, analert is transmitted to a designated recipient prior to, simultaneouslywith, or in lieu of an alert being transmitted to the monitoredindividual

In some aspects, this disclosure relates to a system comprising one ormore 3D motion sensors, a computerized monitoring system, and acomputerized communication system as mentioned above. The prohibitedobject detection system may further comprise a central video monitoringsystem communicatively coupled to the computerized communication system.The central video monitoring system may be configured to display animage of the detected object. The central video monitoring system maycomprise a primary display and an alert display. The alert display maybe a dedicated portion of the primary display or may be a display orseries of displays separate from the primary display. The primarydisplay be used to display images or video continuously from the 3Dmotion sensors, and the alert display may be used for displaying alertsand/or images of a prohibited object when such an object is detected bythe computerized monitoring system. Accordingly, in some aspects, thecentral video monitoring system may be configured to move the display ofthe image(s) from the primary display to the alert display upon receiptof an alert.

Additional objects, advantages, and novel features of the disclosurewill be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in partwill become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of thefollowing, or may be learned by practice of the disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The description references the attached drawing figures, wherein:

FIGS. 1-6 are exemplary flowcharts for computerized monitoring andobject detection systems, in accordance with embodiments of the presentdisclosure;

FIGS. 7-19 are exemplary displays for computerized monitoring and objectdetection systems, in accordance with embodiments of the presentdisclosure; and

FIG. 20 is a block diagram of an example operating device in whichembodiments of the present disclosure may be employed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The subject matter of the present invention is described withspecificity herein to meet statutory requirements. However, thedescription itself is not intended to limit the scope of this patent.Rather, the inventor has contemplated that the claimed subject mattermight also be embodied in other ways, to include different steps orcombinations of steps similar to the ones described in this document, inconjunction with other present or future technologies. Moreover,although the terms “step” and/or “block” may be used herein to connotedifferent elements of methods employed, the terms should not beinterpreted as implying any particular order among or between varioussteps herein disclosed unless and except when the order of individualsteps is explicitly described.

As noted in the Background, care facilities, such as hospitals, facemany challenges in addition to simply caring for patients. For example,securing patients and equipment (e.g., medical devices) consumes manyresources, and current methods lack effectiveness. In addition torequiring personnel to physically monitor locations within the facility,facilities often use visitor logs, and visitor badges, andradio-frequency identification (RFID) technology to control access tocertain locations within the facility. However, each of these solutionsrequire subjective decision-making and are prone to error by thepersonnel who are monitoring the locations, assisting visitors signing avisitor log, or issuing visitor badges.

Further, none of these methods necessarily prevent an otherwiseauthorized visitor from breaching areas of the facility where thevisitor is specifically not authorized. For example, a visitor may beauthorized to visit a particular patient but, based on some condition ofthe patient, may not have close contact with the patient. In contrast, acaregiver of the same patient may need to have close contact with thepatient. In some situations, an authorized visitor may unwittinglyprovide contraband (e.g., something or some object a particular patientis not allowed) to a patient that the current methods are unable todetect. Additionally, some objects may be contraband or present animmediate danger only when being used in a particular manner. Finally,medical devices are constantly being shuffled between patients andlocations within a facility, and tracking the locations of these devicescan be extremely difficult. Accordingly, overall security forindividuals, such as patients, and equipment suffers, and the manyresources currently being utilized for security measures are wasted.Although these issues are particularly prevalent in healthcarefacilities, other types of facilities, such are rehabilitationfacilities and detention facilities, face similar concerns.

As shown in FIG. 1, a system for detecting prohibited objects 100 mayinclude one or more 3D camera, motion, and/or sound sensors 104.Although described as 3D sensors, it is contemplated that at least someaspects of the present invention may be accomplished using 2D sensors.Additionally, this disclosure also refers to the one or more 3D camera,motion, and/or sound sensors 104 as “3D motion sensor” for simplicity,but it is contemplated that the disclosed sensors are configured toperform imaging functions and, in some embodiments, sound capturingfunctions as described herein.

As used herein, a 3D motion sensor is an electronic device that containsone or more cameras capable of identifying individual objects, people,and motion. In some aspects, the 3D motion sensor 104 may furthercontain one or more microphones to detect audio. The camera(s) of 3Dmotion sensor 104 may utilize technologies including but not limited tocolor RGB, CMOS sensors, lasers, infrared projectors, and RF-modulatedlight. The 3D motion sensor 104 may have one or more integratedmicroprocessors and/or image sensors to detect and process informationboth transmitted from and received by the various cameras. In someembodiment's, 3D motion sensor 104 may be referred to as an imagesensor. Exemplary 3D motion sensors include the Microsoft® Kinect®Camera, the Sony® PlayStation® Camera, and the Intel® RealSense™ Camera,each of which happens to include microphones, although sound capture isnot essential to some aspects of the disclosure.

A user may be able to configure alerts based on data that is receivedfrom the 3D motion sensor 104 and interpreted by a computerized patientmonitoring and object system 106 (also referred to as a computerizedmonitoring system). For example, a user can configure the computerizedmonitoring system 106 to provide alerts based on data the computerizedmonitoring system 106 has interpreted for setting zones within amonitored room by comparing data from multiple systems (e.g., RTLS orfacial recognition) to detect authorized visitors and/or objects and anindividual crossing a trip wire, falling on the ground, orentering/exiting a safety zone.

As used herein, “a sensor” and “sensors” are used interchangeably in thesingular and plural unless expressly described as a singular sensor oran array of sensors. A singular sensor may be used, or a sensor maycomprise two or more cameras integrated into a single physical unit.Alternately, two or more physically distinct sensors may be used, or twoor more physically distinct arrays of sensors may be used.

As used herein, “prohibited object” may be any object in the room beingmonitored that is not allowed to be in close proximity to a monitoredindividual. Additionally, rather than being prohibited for a particularperson, a prohibited object may include an object prohibited to aparticular location. For example, a prohibited object may include anyobject within the room being monitored that is not allowed to be in thatparticular room, a room of that type, an area of a facility, or anywherewithin the facility.

As shown in FIG. 1, prohibited object detection system 100 may beutilized to register an object in the room of a monitored individual.For example, a 3D motion sensor 104 may detect an object 102 (e.g.,medication, food, beverage, drug paraphernalia, tobacco products,weapons, and the like) in the room of the individual. Features of theobject 102 may be analyzed by computerized monitoring system 106 andstored in database 110. In some embodiments, the computerized monitoringsystem 106 may identify the object 102 as well as provide descriptiveinformation relating to object 102. For example, the name of the object,category of the object, types of people for whom the object isprohibited (e.g., categories of individuals with certain food and drinkprohibitions or with health and safety concerns), or any otherparameters the may be used to configure alerts based on the specificobject or category of object.

At step 108, computerized monitoring system 106 may determine whether anidentified object 102 has been previously registered. If the object 102has already been registered in database 110, no further action is taken.If the object is not already registered in database 110, data pertainingto object 102 may be stored in database 110. Such data may include oneor more images of object 102 along with the descriptive information,including information indicating whether object 102 is allowed orprohibited and establishing any identification zone requirements.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a monitoring and detection system 200 fordetecting contraband is illustrated. Monitoring and detection system 200may comprise a 3D motion sensor 204, a computerized monitoring system206, a computerized communication system 212, a central video monitoringsystem 216, and a database 218. The 3D motion sensor 204 may beco-located with a monitored individual 202. The monitored individual 202may be monitored in a variety of environments, including, withoutlimitation, a hospital, a home, a hospice care facility, a nursing home,an assisted living facility, an outpatient care facility, arehabilitation facility, a correctional or detention facility, and thelike. The 3D motion sensor 204 may be positioned within a room where itis likely to capture images of the face of the individual 202 to bemonitored. For example, a 3D motion sensor 204 may be oriented to takeimages of a bed, chair, or other location where the individual 202 to bemonitored may spend a significant amount of time. In some embodiments,the 3D motion sensor 204 may be oriented towards a door or entryway totake images of persons and/or objects entering and exiting the room ofthe individual 202. In some embodiments, the 3D motion sensor 204 may beoriented to take images of equipment (e.g., medical devices) that may belocated in the room of the individual 202 to be monitored. The 3D motionsensor 204 may be permanently installed or may be temporarily set up ina room as needed.

The individual 202 to be monitored may be under immediate care (e.g., ina medical facility under the supervision of a medical professional) ormay not be under immediate care (e.g., in a home or other environment,possibly with a caregiver). A caregiver may be a medical professional orparaprofessional, such as an orderly, nurse's aide, nurse, or the like.A caregiver may also be a friend, relative, individual, company, orfacility that provides assistance with daily living activities and/orcare for individuals, such as individuals who are disabled, ill,injured, elderly, or otherwise in need of temporary or long-termassistance. In some instances, the person to be monitored may beself-sufficient and not under the immediate care of any other person orservice provider.

The 3D motion sensor 204 may communicate data, such as images of theindividual 202 being monitored (e.g., via skeletal tracking or virtualblob recognition) or an object detected in the room, to a computerizedmonitoring system 206. The computerized monitoring system 206 is acomputer programmed to monitor transmissions of data from the 3D motionsensor 204 and may perform functions previously described forcomputerized monitoring system 106 of FIG. 1. The computerizedmonitoring system 206 may be integral to the 3D motion sensor 204 or maybe a distinctly separate apparatus from the 3D motion sensor 204. Forinstance, computerized monitoring system 206 may be in a remote locationfrom 3D motion sensor 204 provided that the computerized monitoringsystem 206 is directly or indirectly communicatively coupled to the 3Dmotion sensor 204. The computerized monitoring system 206 may be locatedin the monitored person's room, such as a hospital room, bedroom, orliving room.

The computerized monitoring system 206 may receive data from 3D motionsensor 204 for a monitoring zone (e.g., the patient's room or area to bemonitored). At step 208, the computerized monitoring system 206 mayassess whether a prohibited object is detected in the room. If aprohibited object is not detected in the room, the computerizedmonitoring system 206 may continue to analyze images in the monitoringzone as long as 3D motion sensor 204 continues to transmit data. Themonitoring zone may be a particular portion of the room in which theindividual 202 is located and may be automatically configured or definedby a user in a manner similar as the identification zone described inFIGS. 8-13.

If a prohibited object is detected within the monitoring zone at step208, computerized monitoring system 206 may, at step 210, determinewhether the prohibited object was in proximity to the patient.Computerized monitoring system 206 may establish an identification zonewithin the monitoring zone that, if crossed by a prohibited object,establishes that the prohibited object was in proximity to the patient.In some embodiments, the identification zone may be generatedautomatically by computerized monitoring system 206 using a configurable(pre-determined) distance from the monitored individual 202's skeletonor face as identified by the 3D motion sensors 204. Alternatively oradditionally, such an identification zone may also be configured by anadministrator of the computerized monitoring system 206. Identificationzones can be established using any shapes, including, withoutlimitation, rectangles, squares, circles, ovals, triangles, andirregular shapes.

Configuring the identification zone may include computerized monitoringsystem 206 assigning reference points to identify boundaries of theidentification zone. For example, reference points for a zone may definea perimeter around the monitored individual 202. The reference pointsmay be associated with particular structures of or within the room(e.g., wall, floor, bed, chair) or may be based on a predetermineddistance from the individual 202 or certain features of the individual202 (e.g., face, hands). It should be understood that the selection ofthe reference points may vary with the individual and/or theconfiguration of the monitoring system 200. Reference points may beconfigured automatically by the computerized monitoring system 206, maybe configured automatically by the computerized monitoring system 206subject to confirmation and/or modification by a user, or may beconfigured manually by a user.

On detecting the prohibited object came into close proximity to thepatient, such as by entering the identification zone, the computerizedcommunication system 212 may be configured to send an alert of theprohibited object to one or more designated recipients 220 (e.g.,caregiver). In some embodiments, computerized communication system 212may be configured to send an alert of the prohibited object to one ormore designated recipients 220 only upon the computerized monitoringsystem 206 determining that the prohibited object is in close proximityto monitored individual 202 for a predetermined duration of time.Computerized communication system 212 may be an integral part ofcomputerized monitoring system 206. In other embodiments, computerizedcommunication system 212 is implemented using separate software,firmware and/or hardware that is remote from computerized monitoringsystem 206 while being directly or indirectly communicatively coupled tocomputerized monitoring system 206.

When an alert is triggered, the alert may be sent, at least initially,to the individual 202 being monitored, to give the individual 202 beingmonitored an opportunity to respond before alerting other recipients,such as the central video monitoring system 216 and/or designatedrecipients 220. For example, an audible message may be played in theroom where individual 202 is being monitored. The audio message maystate a warning or instructions, such as: “Please move the prohibitedobject away from the patient.”

As shown as step 214 in FIG. 2, computerized monitoring system 206 cananalyze subsequent image data from 3D motion sensor 204 to determinewhether any corrective action was taken. Such corrective action mayinclude the prohibited object being moved out of the identification zoneor gestures consistent with a yes or no answer (such as a head nod orshake) to determine if the action has been or will be corrected. Inembodiments in which the 3D motion sensor 204 is equipped with amicrophone, computerized monitoring system 206 can analyze sound datafor recognizable words, such as “okay”, “yes”, “no”, or “help”.

In some aspects, the computerized monitoring system 206 may also becommunicatively coupled to a central video monitoring system 216. Thecomputerized monitoring system 206 and central video monitoring system216 may be remotely located at any physical location so long as a wiredor wireless data connection exists (e.g., USB, TCP/IP or comparable)between the computerized monitoring system 206, the computerizedcommunication system 212 (if separate from computerized monitoringsystem 206), the central video monitoring system 216, and the 3D motionsensor(s) 204.

In some aspects, the central video monitoring system 216 may be alertedif no response indicating possible corrective action is received at step214, or if the response is unintelligible or indicates that theindividual 202 being monitored or another person possessing theprohibited object does not intend to comply with the alert and/orinstructions. Alternately or additionally, central video monitoringsystem 216 may be alerted with or even before individual 202, so thatcentral video monitoring system 216 can determine whether the prohibitedobject detected actually poses a threat. On receiving an alert, thecentral video monitoring system 216 or an attendant stationed at thesystem may view live image, video, and/or audio feed from the 3D motionsensor 204 and evaluate whether the prohibited object presents a dangerto the monitored individual 202 and/or to others. If individual 202 hasbeen alerted by the computerized communication system 212, the centralvideo monitoring system 216 or an attendant can use the data from 3Dmotion sensor 204 to evaluate whether a response from individual 202indicates that individual 202 or a person possessing the prohibitedobject is complying with the identification zone requirements (i.e.,moving the object away from individual 202). Central video monitoringsystem 216 and/or computerized monitoring system 206 may analyze theresponse from individual 202 and/or a person possessing the prohibitedobject. If the response does not include words or gestures recognizableby the system(s), an attendant at central video monitoring system 216may be able to interpret the person's response. If needed, the centralvideo monitoring system 216 and/or the attendant could then approveinitiating an alerts to appropriate designated recipients 220 and/orcall for emergency assistance (e.g., send a request for security).

One or more designated recipients 220 local to individual 202 can bealerted with or even before individual 202 and/or central videomonitoring system 216, so that the designated recipient 220 can assesswhat is happening in person. Or, monitored individual 202, designatedrecipient 220, and the central video monitoring system 216 may all bealerted at the same time. The priority and timing of alerts to differentindividuals or systems can be configured in accordance with the needsand desires of a particular facility, experience with a particularmonitored individual or type of individual, or any other criterion ofthe system owner or user. This is true for initial alerts as well ascontinuing alerts (e.g., if a prohibited object is detected in andremains in close proximity to the individual 202, and no response fromindividual 202 or a caregiver 220 is received or observed) and repeatedalerts (e.g., two or more distinct events where a prohibited object isdetected in close proximity to the individual 202). Further, thepriority and timing of alerts to different individuals may be differentfor initial, continuing, and/or repeated alerts.

Data associated with alerts may be logged by computerized monitoringsystem 206 and/or central video monitoring system 216 in a database 218.Data associated with an alert may include, without limitation, thetelemetry data from 3D motion sensor 204 that triggered the alert;buffered data preceding the telemetry data that triggered the alert;telemetry data subsequent to the alert; the number and substantivecontent of alerts; the individual(s) and/or groups to whom an alert wasaddressed; the response, if any, received or observed following analert; and combinations thereof. In some embodiments, data associatedwith the alert may include the video and/or pictures of the prohibitedobject.

In FIG. 3, a monitoring and detection system 300 is illustrated andcomprises a 3D motion sensor 304, a computerized monitoring system 306,a computerized communication system 314, and a central video monitoringsystem 318. These components of monitoring and detection system 300 mayperform the same or similar functions described with respect to system200 in FIG. 2. For instance, 3D motion sensor 304 may be co-located withan individual 302 to be monitored and may transmit captured data of theindividual 302 (such as image data) to the computerized monitoringsystem 306.

The computerized monitoring system 306 may receive data from 3D motionsensor 304 for a monitoring zone (i.e., the individual 302's room orarea to be monitored). At step 308, the computerized monitoring system306 may detect whether a prohibited object is in the monitoring zone. Ifa prohibited object is not detected, the computerized monitoring system306 may continue to analyze images in the monitoring zone as long as 3Dmotion sensor 304 continues to transmit data.

In detecting and identifying objects, computerized monitoring system 306may assign reference points to distinctive features of the object. Itshould be understood that the selection of the reference points may varywith the individual and/or the configuration of the monitoring anddetection system 300. Reference points may be configured automaticallyby the computerized monitoring system 306, may be configuredautomatically by the computerized monitoring system 306 subject to userconfirmation and/or user modification, or may be configured manually bya user. For instance, in some aspects, reference points are assigned todistinctive or key features identified by computerized monitoring system306 using facial recognition algorithms. The key features identified andused may vary with the kind of technology (e.g., visible vs. infraredlight) and/or prominent or accessible features a monitored individual.In some aspects, reference points are identified along the contours ofan object.

The reference points corresponding to the object may be compared to adatabase, such as database 320, storing reference points of knownobjects, which may include contraband (prohibited objects) and/oracceptable objects. Various machine learning and/or object recognitiontechniques may additionally be utilized to determine if the object is aknown and/or prohibited object. In some embodiments, the databaseincludes reference points of only acceptable objects, and, if no matchis found in the database of known or acceptable objects, the object isautomatically identified as being a prohibited object. Alternatively,the database may include reference points of only prohibited objectssuch that any match between the detected object and a known objectwithin the database automatically indicates that the detected object isprohibited. In some embodiments, detecting a prohibited object includesfirst identifying the object using the reference points and thendetermining whether the object is prohibited in a particular instance.Determining that the identified object is prohibited may include usinginformation within a patient's electronic health record to determinewhat, if any, objects may be prohibited for the particular patient.Other types of records indicating restrictions may further be receivedto determine whether the identified object is restricted or prohibitedfor the particular individual being monitored, the type of individualbeing monitored, the area (such as a particular floor or section) of afacility with the individual to be monitored, or the facility ingeneral.

If a prohibited object is detected within the monitoring zone at step308, computerized monitoring system 306 may, at step 310, determinewhether the prohibited object is in close proximity to individual 302.Detecting whether the object and the individual are within closeproximity may include determining whether the object is within athreshold proximity (or threshold distance) of the individual. If theprohibited object is not in close proximity to individual 302, thecomputerized monitoring system 306 may continue to analyze images in themonitoring zone as long as 3D motion sensor 304 continues to transmitdata. If, on the other hand, the prohibited object is within closeproximity to individual 302 (or, in some embodiments, within closeproximity to patient for a configurable duration of time), thecomputerized monitoring system 306 may determine whether a caregiver 322or other responsible individual is detected in the room (i.e., such asby using real-time locating systems or facial recognition technologies),as shown at step 312. If a caregiver 322 is detected in the room, thecomputerized monitoring system 306 may continue to analyze images in themonitoring zone as long as 3D motion sensor 304 continues to transmitdata.

If, on the other hand, a caregiver 322 is not detected in the room,computerized monitoring system 306 may initiate an alerting protocol.For example, computerized monitoring system 306 may communicate an imageof the prohibited object to the computerized communication system 314,which may be configured to send an alert of the prohibited object to oneor more designated recipients (e.g., caregiver(s) 322, securitypersonnel). As described with FIG. 2, when an alert is triggered, thealert may be sent, at least initially, to the individual 302 beingmonitored, to give the individual 302 an opportunity to respond beforealerting the central video monitoring system 318 and/or caregiver(s)322. Additionally, as shown as step 316 in FIG. 3, computerizedmonitoring system 306 can analyze subsequent image data and, in someaspects, audio data from 3D motion sensor 304 for corrective action.

Like with central video monitoring system 218 of FIG. 2, central videomonitoring system 318 may be alerted if no intelligible responseindicating responsible action is received at step 316 or may be alertedwith or even before individual 302, so that central video monitoringsystem 318 can determine whether the prohibited object detected presentsa problem. If needed, the central video monitoring system 318 and/or theattendant could then approve alert(s) to appropriate caregiver(s) 322and/or call for emergency assistance (e.g., send a request forsecurity).

Further as described with respect to FIG. 2, one or more caregiver(s)322 local to individual 302 can be alerted with or even beforeindividual 302 and/or central video monitoring system 318, or themonitored individual 302, caregiver(s) 322 and the central videomonitoring system 318 may all be alerted at the same time. The priorityand timing of alerts to different individuals or systems can beconfigured in accordance with the needs and desires of a particularfacility, experience with a particular monitored individual or type ofindividual, or any other criterion of the system owner or user.

Data associated with alerts may be logged by computerized monitoringsystem 306 and/or central video monitoring system 318 in a database 320.Data associated with an alert may include, without limitation, thetelemetry data from 3D motion sensor 304 that triggered the alert;buffered data preceding the telemetry data that triggered the alert;telemetry data subsequent to the alert; the number and substantivecontent of an alert; the individual(s) and/or groups to whom an alertwas addressed; the response, if any, received or observed following analert; and combinations thereof.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a monitoring and detection system 400 isillustrated. Monitoring and detection system comprises one or more 3Dmotion sensors 404, a computerized monitoring system 406, a computerizedcommunication system 412, a central video monitoring system 416, and adatabase 418. These components of monitoring and detection system 400may perform the same or similar functions described with respect tosystems 200 and 300 in FIGS. 2 and 3, respectively. For instance, 3Dmotion sensor 404 may be co-located with an individual 402 to bemonitored and may transmit captured data of the individual 402 (such asimages and other description data) to the computerized monitoring system406 for detection of a prohibited object.

At step 408, the computerized monitoring system 406 may use datareceived from the one or more 3D motion sensors 404 to assess whether aprohibited object is detected in the room in a manner similar theprocesses described in FIGS. 2 and 3. If a prohibited object is notdetected in the room or other monitoring zone, the computerizedmonitoring system 406 may continue to analyze images of the monitoringzone as long as 3D motion sensor 404 continues to transmit data.

Detecting and identifying an object may be performed by computerizedmonitoring system 406 through assignment of reference points to certainfeatures of an object as described for FIG. 3. The reference pointscorresponding to the object may be compared to reference points of knownobjects, including prohibited objects and/or acceptable objects. Variousmachine learning and/or object recognition techniques may additionallybe utilized to determine if the object is a known and/or prohibitedobject.

If a prohibited object is detected within the room or monitoring zone atstep 408, computerized monitoring system 406 may, at step 410, determinewhether the prohibited object was in proximity to a person, such as themonitored individual 402, a caregiver, a visitor, or another individual.Specifically, in embodiments of system 400, computerized monitoringsystem 406 detects whether the detected object is in close proximity toone or more hands of such person. As such, computerized monitoringsystem 406 may use skeletal tracking and/or virtual blob detection tospecifically detect a location of an individual's hands, such as thehands of a patient being monitored, a caregiver, or another personpresent within the monitored zone.

Similar to computerized monitoring system 206 of FIG. 2, computerizedmonitoring system 406 may establish an identification zone within themonitoring zone that is used to establish and distinguish the identityof the monitored individual 402 from other individuals, such ascaregivers or visitors. An identification zone may also be used bycomputerized monitoring system 406 to make a determination as to whetherthe prohibited object was in proximity to the monitored individual'shand or to the hand of a caregiver, visitor or other person. Theidentification zone may be generated in a manner previously discussedwith respect to FIG. 2.

Upon detecting the prohibited object came into close proximity to handsof the monitored individual 402 or other person within the monitoredzone, an alerting protocol may be automatically initiated. This alertingprotocol may be similar to the protocol discussed in FIG. 3. Forinstance, computerized monitoring system 406 may transmit adetermination of the prohibited object being detected to thecomputerized communication system 412 and/or central video monitoringsystem 416. Computerized communication system 412 may be configured tothen send an alert of the prohibited object to one or more designatedrecipients 420 (e.g., caregiver). In some embodiments, computerizedcommunication system 412 may be configured to send an alert of theprohibited object to one or more designated recipients 420 only upondetermining that the prohibited object has been in close proximity tothe hand of the monitored individual 402 or other person for at least apredetermined duration of time (i.e., a threshold amount of time).

As previously described in FIGS. 2 and 3, when an alert is triggered,the alert may be initially sent to the monitored individual 402 orgenerally to the monitored zone such that the alert, which may include awarning or instructions, can be observed by another individual withinthe zone. As shown as step 414 in FIG. 4, computerized monitoring system406 can analyze subsequent image data and, in some embodiments, audiodata from 3D motion sensor 404 for corrective action, such as theprohibited object moving out of the hand of the individual 402,caregiver, visitor, or other person or gestures, consistent with a yesor no answer.

Additionally, central video monitoring system 416 may be alerted if nointelligible response indicative of corrective action is received atstep 414. Alternately or additionally, central video monitoring system416 may be alerted with or even before an alert is sent to individual402 or the monitored zone, so that central video monitoring system 416can determine whether the prohibited object detected is, in fact,problematic. Such a determination may be done as described further withrespect to FIGS. 2 and 3. If it is determined that the prohibited objectin proximity to a hand of an individual poses a problem (such as ahealth, safety, or security threat), the central video monitoring system416 and/or attendant stationed at the system could then approve alertingdesignated recipients 420 (such as a caregiver) and/or calling foremergency assistance (e.g., send a request for security).

As with FIGS. 2 and 3, one or more designated recipients 420 local topatient 402 can be alerted with or even before individual 402 and/orcentral video monitoring system 416, so that the designated recipient420 can assess what is happening in person. Alternatively, the monitoredindividual 402, the designated recipient 420, and the central videomonitoring system 416 could all be alerted at the same time. Thepriority and timing of alerts to different individuals or stations canbe configured in accordance with the needs and desires of a particularfacility, experience with a particular monitored individual or type ofindividual, or any other user-specified criterion. Additionally, dataassociated with alerts may be logged by computerized monitoring system406 and/or central video monitoring system 416 in a database 418 asdescried with respect to FIGS. 2 and 3.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a monitoring and detection system 500 isillustrated. Monitoring and detection system comprises one or more 3Dmotion sensors 504, a computerized monitoring system 506, a computerizedcommunication system 514, a central video monitoring system 518, and adatabase 520. These components of monitoring and detection system 500may perform the same or similar functions described with respect tosystems 200, 300, and 400 in FIGS. 2-4. For instance, 3D motion sensor504 may be co-located with an individual 502 to be monitored and maytransmit captured data of the individual 502 (such as images and otherdescription data) to the computerized monitoring system 506 fordetection of a prohibited object.

At step 508, the computerized monitoring system 506 may use datareceived from the one or more 3D motion sensors 504 to assess whether aprohibited object is detected in the room in a manner similar asdescribed in FIGS. 2-4. If a prohibited object is not detected in theroom or other monitoring zone, the computerized monitoring system 506may continue to analyze images in the monitoring zone as long as 3Dmotion sensor 504 continues to transmit data.

Detecting and identifying an object may be performed by computerizedmonitoring system 506 through assignment of reference points to certainfeatures of an object as described for FIGS. 3 and 4. The referencepoints corresponding to the object may be compared to reference pointsof known objects, including prohibited objects and/or acceptableobjects. Various machine learning and/or object recognition techniquesmay additionally be utilized to determine if the object is a knownand/or prohibited.

If a prohibited object is detected within the room or monitoring zone atstep 508, computerized monitoring system 56 may, at step 510, determinewhether the prohibited object is in proximity to a person, such as themonitored individual 502, a caregiver, a visitor, or another individual.Like computerized monitoring system 406, computerized monitoring system506 detects whether the detected object is in close proximity to one ormore hands of such person, as shown in step 510. As such, computerizedmonitoring system 506 may utilize skeletal tracking and/or virtual blobdetection to specifically detect a location of an individual's hands,such as the hands of a patient being monitored, a caregiver, or anotherperson present within the monitored zone.

Similar to computerized monitoring system 206 of FIG. 2, computerizedmonitoring system 506 may establish an identification zone within themonitoring zone that is used to establish and distinguish the identityof the monitored individual 502 from other individuals, such ascaregivers or visitors. An identification zone may also be used bycomputerized monitoring system 506 to make a determination as to whetherthe prohibited object was in proximity to the monitored individual'shand or to the hand of a caregiver, visitor or other person. Theidentification zone may be generated in a manner previously discussedwith respect to FIG. 2.

If the prohibited object is determined to not be held in the hand of anindividual within the monitoring zone or identification zone at step510, the computerized monitoring and system 506 may continue to analyzeimages in the monitoring zone and/or identification zone as long as 3Dmotion sensor 504 continues to transmit data. If, on the other hand, theprohibited object is detected as being in the hand of the monitoredindividual 502 or another individual, the computerized monitoring system506 may determine whether the prohibited object is being held in amanner consistent with an imminent use of the prohibited object, asshown in step 512.

Determining the prohibited object is being held or is positioned in amanner that is consistent with an imminent use may be performed usingreference points assigned to the prohibited object. In exemplaryaspects, the spatial relationship between reference points on the objectand/or between reference points on the object and points identified onthe individual proximate to the prohibited object may be used todetermine an orientation of the object. The particular orientation(which may also be referred to herein as the position) may match a knownorientation for a use of the object. In other words, detecting that anobject is positioned for imminent use may include identifying relativelocations of reference points for the object and comparing thoserelative locations (also referred to wherein as the pattern of referencepoints) to relative locations for known imminent uses of the object. Thelocations may be relative to other reference points of the object orrelative to reference points of other objects or of people, includingreference points on a skeletal outline identified for the monitored orother individual. For instance, if the prohibited object is a gun,computerized monitoring system 506 may determine whether the grip and/ortrigger of the identified gun is within an individual's hand. Further,in some aspects, the computerized monitoring system 506 may determinewhether the barrel of the detected gun is in a non-vertical positionand/or whether the muzzle is aimed at another person. In another examplewhere the prohibited object is a soda bottle (such as where themonitored individual 502 is restricted from drinking), the computerizedmonitoring system 506 may determine whether a cap has been removed fromthe top of the bottle and/or whether the shaft of the bottle is in asubstantially vertical alignment.

Each prohibited object stored in the database, such as database 520, maybe associated with at least one imminent use pattern of reference pointsidentifying a use of the object. In some embodiments, database 520includes objects with reference point patterns indicating a proper useand/or improper use as some objects may not be strictly prohibited butpresent a danger when improperly used. As such, computerized monitoringsystem 506 may determine whether the reference points of the detectedobject represent a proper use or an improper use. As used herein, a“proper use” refers to a use that does not pose a safety, security, orhealth concern. For some objects, the use may pose a concern when it isbeing used as intended. As such, there may be instances in which anobject is being used as intended and triggers the alerting protocol.

If the prohibited object is determined to not be held in a mannerconsistent with its imminent use, the computerized monitoring system 506may continue to analyze images in the monitoring zone as long as 3Dmotion sensor 504 continues to transmit data. However, if the prohibitedobject is determined to be held in the hand in a manner consistent withits imminent use, the computerized monitoring system 506 may initiate analerting protocol as previously disclosed with respect to FIGS. 2-4.Computerized monitoring system 506 may transmit the determination and,in some instances, an image of the prohibited object, to thecomputerized communication system 514 and/or the central videomonitoring system 518. Computerized communication system 514 may beconfigured to send an alert of the prohibited object to one or moredesignated recipients 522, central video monitoring system 518,monitored individual 502 and/or the individual within the monitoringzone detected to be in proximity to the object. In some embodiments,computerized communication system 514 is configured to send an alert ofthe prohibited object to one or more designated recipients 522 only upondetermining that the prohibited object has been in an imminent useposition for at least a predetermined duration of time.

As previously described in FIGS. 2-4, when an alert is triggered, thealert may be initially sent to the monitored individual 502 or generallyto the monitored zone and computerized monitoring system 506 can analyzesubsequent image data and, in some embodiments, audio data from 3Dmotion sensor 504 to detect for corrective action, as shown in step 516.Such corrective action may include the prohibited object moving out ofthe hand of the individual 502, caregiver, visitor, or other person, theprohibited object moving out of an imminent use position, or gestures orwords

FIG. 6 depicts a monitoring and detection system 600 utilized forseparate monitored individuals. As shown in FIG. 6, system 600 includesa centralized monitoring system 606 that receives data from multiplecomputerized monitoring and communication systems 604A, 604B, 604C. Forsimplicity, the computerized monitoring and communication systems 604A,604B, 604C are each shown as a single unit intended to representcomputerized monitoring systems and computerized communication systems,which are depicted separately in FIGS. 2-5. Just as in the systems inFIGS. 2-5, it is contemplated that the computerized communication systemmay be integrated into the computerized monitoring system or may be runas a separate software and/or hardware component that is communicativelycoupled to the computerized monitoring system.

Computerized monitoring and communication systems 604A, 604B, 604Creceive data from 3D motions sensors 602A, 602B, 602C, which are,respectively, monitoring persons 601A, 601B, 601C. Data, such as imageor sound data from the 3D motion sensors or data relating to detectionsof prohibited objects, may be transmitted from each of the computerizedmonitoring and communication systems 604A, 604B, 604C to the centralizedmonitoring system 606. In exemplary aspects, at least some data from the3D motion sensors 602A, 602B, and 602C, such as image data, mayroutinely be displayed on centralized monitoring primary display 608 ofthe centralized monitoring system 606. A single primary display 608 maydisplay data from more than one computerized monitoring andcommunication systems 604A, 604B, 604C, as shown in view 700 in FIG. 7.Alternately, primary display 608 may comprise two or more distinctscreens, each of which may display data from one or more computerizedmonitoring systems. When displayed in a single display screen, displayareas for each computerized monitoring and communication system may beoperated and adjusted separately. For instance, as shown, the displayfor monitored person 701C has an open configuration window 710 specificto monitored person 701C.

When the centralized monitoring system 606 receives an alert from any ofthe computerized monitoring and communication systems 604A, 604B, 604Cindicating that a monitored person 601A, 601B, 601C is in proximity to aprohibited object (including an alert that the object is in proximity toa hand and/or is in an imminent use position) as shown at step 610,audio and/or visual alert information for that particular person and/orthe prohibited object may be displayed on the centralized monitoringalert display 612 of centralized monitoring system 606. An alert can bepresented in a variety of formats. An alert may be a visual cue on adisplay screen at the centralized monitoring system 606 (e.g.,centralized monitoring alert display 612). A visual cue may include thespecific video feed associated with the alert flashing or beinghighlighted in a color to draw attention to that display among others.An alert may be an audible sound (e.g., a voice or alarm type sound) atthe centralized monitoring system 606, an audible sound at thecomputerized monitoring and communication system attached to the 3Dmotion sensor, a text message, an email, turning on a light, or runninga program on a computer.

If the central monitoring system 606 receives alerts from more than oneof the computerized monitoring and communication systems 604A, 604B,604C, the centralized monitoring alert display 612 may display thevideo, audio and/or alerting information from all such instances at thesame time. In some embodiments, if no alert is received by thecentralized monitoring system 606, nothing is displayed on thecentralized monitoring alert display 612. Preferably, all monitoredindividual rooms can be displayed and visible on the centralizedmonitoring primary display 608 regardless of whether an alert isoccurring. When an alert is generated, the user interface of a display,such as centralized monitoring primary display 608, may be altered toattract attention to the particular image of video feed, and/or aduplicative display of the alerting camera can be displayed on a secondseparate computer monitor (e.g., the centralized monitoring alertdisplay 612). An electronic record of any alerts received, any responsesto the alert observed or received, and/or any actions taken by thecentralized monitoring system 606 can be stored in a database 614.

FIG. 7 shows an exemplary view for a central monitoring primary display700, including video data for multiple monitored persons 701A, 701B, and701C displayed on a single screen. FIG. 8 shows an alternative view forcentral monitoring primary display 800 that displays image data for onlymonitored patient 801C. The user interface in FIG. 8 includes a skeletalFIG. 810, which may represent a skeletal outline of a monitored personidentified by a monitoring system, such as computerized monitoringsystems 206, 306, 406, and 506 or computerized monitoring andcommunication systems 604A-C. The skeletal outline may be used to trackor “lock on” to the patient 801C. Although a skeletal FIG. 810 is shownin FIG. 8, alternate image analysis may be used, including, withoutlimitation, virtual blob recognition.

The graphic interface displayed in FIG. 8 does not include markings forany identification zones. FIG. 9, however, shows an exemplaryconfiguration menu 900, with an option 910 for configuring anidentification zone, an option 920 for configuring other saved zones(such as a monitoring zone), and an option 930 to clear all configuredzones.

FIG. 10 shows a graphic interface displayed as it might appear uponselecting a menu option from FIG. 9 to configure one or more zones. FIG.10 shows an identification zone 1000 generally about the upper torso,shoulders, and head of an individual lying in a hospital bed.Identification zone 1000 may be configured by a computerized monitoringsystem as discussed herein. For example, identification zone 1000 may bedefined as a fixed perimeter or volume around the head of an identifiedindividual as determined based on analysis using skeleton figure, blobrecognition, and/or facial tracking. In some embodiments, anidentification zone that is initially configured by the computerizedmonitoring system may be modified by a user, or a user may be requiredor allowed to manually configure the zone.

In some embodiments, a 3D motion sensor monitoring an individual isconfigured to collect image and/or sound data for a portion of a room orarea that is greater than just the identification zone 1000. Acomputerized monitoring system, such as systems 106, 206, 306, 406, 506,and 604A-C, may analyze only data related to the specifiedidentification zone 1000, with or without capturing images and/or soundfrom the broader portion of the room. Using an identification zone inthis way may reduce total processing capacity required because the mostprocessing-intensive algorithms (e.g., facial tracking, identificationand tracking of reference points) are run on a limited data set from the3D motion sensor. Capturing broader image and/or audio data, however,may help provide context for an alert (e.g., at central video monitoringsystem). For example, using image and/or audio data from most or all ofthe room, computerized monitoring system, central video monitoringsystem, or an attendant using the central video monitoring system maydetermine that it is unnecessary to send an alert to a designatedrecipient if there is already a caregiver in the room and tending to theindividual being monitored at the time of an alert. Identification zone1000 may also help the computerized monitoring system “lock on” to amonitored individual and help avoid situations where a monitoredindividual who is very close to the person possessing a prohibitedobject might be tracked after moving away from the person. If the personmoves out of identification zone 1000, but the individual beingmonitored does not leave identification zone 1000, computerizedmonitoring system can continue to monitor the person possessing theprohibited object outside of identification zone 1000.

When identification zone 1000 is configured by a user, the user mayoperate an input device to select a point on an image or video capturedby one of the 3D motion sensors. The user may draw a perimeter defininga zone by dragging the input device (such as an electronic stylus ormouse pointer) around a display screen. The zone may be defined bydrawing the zone freehanded or by dragging the input device from a firstpoint to a second point on the display screen to define a diagonal axisfor the perimeter of the zone. Other configuration options, includingdrag-and-drop templates and coordinate identification, could be used. A2D monitoring zone can be operated as a perimeter while a thirddimension of depth can be specified separately. As with the perimeter,the computerized monitoring system can define or recommend a depthmeasurement, such as shown by label 1010, or the user can provide thedepth measurement, as further described below.

FIG. 11 shows a pop-up menu 1100 allowing a user to configure orreconfigure the depth of a patient identification zone. The exemplarypop-up menu 1100 solicits a depth parameter from a user. The depthparameter solicited in FIG. 11 is specified in millimeters (mm);however, any desired unit of measure could be used, including, withoutlimitation, centimeters, meters, inches, feet, and yards. On setting adepth parameter and while still in a configuration view, the depth of anidentification zone may be visible as a label 1200, as shown in FIG. 12.The depth label 1200 may not be visible during routine monitoring and/oralert monitoring, so as not to obscure the person being monitored and/orother activity in any image data from 3D motion sensor.

FIG. 13 shows another menu 1300 from configuration view. As shown inFIG. 13, a user may be permitted to turn monitoring on or off (e.g., by“unchecking” video feed and/or audio feed). It may be desirable todisable audio feed, for example, at a central video monitoring system,to prevent overlapping audio feeds from becoming unintelligible noise.If voice or word recognition algorithms are used, those algorithms mayrun at a computerized monitoring system even if audio feed is disabledat a monitoring station, such as central video monitoring system. Uponan alert issuing or as desired, the audio feed could be enabled for oneor more particular persons being monitored, which could provide contextfor the alert. It also may be desirable to disable audio and/or videofeeds to provide some privacy to the individual. For example, it may bedesirable to disable audio and/or video feed while the individual isbeing examined by a medical professional, or bathed, or while visitorsare present. The need for computerized monitoring is somewhat reducedwhile the individual is interacting with medical professionals,caregivers, or visitors. However, if desired, the audio and/or videofeed can be maintained even when there are other others with the patientcorresponding to the person being monitored.

While the view in FIG. 13 shows an identification zone, in some aspects,identification zones are not visually marked on a user interface outsideof the configured screens even though the zones may be configured andoperational. In other words, the zones may be configured and operationalbut are not superimposed on the images of the monitored individuals soas to permit an unobstructed view of individuals.

If the “Device” menu option in FIG. 13 is selected, the user may see apop-up menu 1400, as shown in FIG. 14. The use of pop-up, drop down,tabular, or other kinds of menus may be recommended based on, forexample, the number and kinds of options associated with a particularmenu. However, different kinds of menus could be presented based on useror facility preferences. Pop-up menu 1400 includes a number of tabs, andan “Alerts” tab 1410 has been selected to display an alerts window 1420in FIG. 14. The space within the alerts window 1420 is blank, indicatingthat no alerts have been configured. If a user selects “Add” button 1430at the bottom of the Alerts tab 1410, a new pop-up menu 1500 may appear,as shown in FIG. 15.

As shown in FIG. 15, pop-up menu 1520 further includes drop-down menusto configure an alert by specifying an event 1522, an action 1524, and,if applicable, an N/A field 1526. The particular words used to describean event, action, and/or NA field may be modified to reflect theenvironment in which the system is being used or the facility orpersonnel using the system. For example, a system, station, or userinterface may be configured for use in a hospital using clinicalterminology. As another example, a remote central video monitoringsystem may have an attendant who is not a medical professional, and layterminology might be used in lieu of or in addition to clinicalterminology. Family or other non-professional and/or non-medicalcaregivers may have access to the monitoring system and/or serve as anattendant for a remote monitoring station. As such, the menus for thoseusers may similarly use descriptive, non-clinical terminology inaddition to or in lieu of clinical terminology. Different languagescould also be used for different interfaces. As shown in FIG. 15, amonitoring system may include monitoring and/or alert functionsunrelated to prohibited objects. If desired, other options may beremoved from the drop-down menu to simplify user configuration choicesfor users who do not want or need access to the other functions. Changesto the menus, including changes to the range of menu options and theterminology used in the menus, may be configured when the system isinstalled or when access is provided to a specific user, and may notrequire or may not be available for further modification by routinesystem users.

On selection of an event 1522 in FIG. 15, the user may be able to selectan action, as shown as action 1610 in FIG. 16. Several of the optionsprovided for an action relate to alerts, such as to provide differentaudible signals to the 3D motion sensor and/or computerized patientmonitoring system; to add or change a color border to a display of imagedata; to highlight or flash a display of image data; to log an alert; tosend e-mail or SMS alerts; or to provide other alerts. As shown in FIG.16, the user has selected the highlight/flash 1620 option such that adisplay of image data will be highlighted and/or will flash if the eventspecified in event 1610 occurs (e.g., if contraband is detected).

As shown in FIG. 17, N/A field 1730 may be blank and/or inactivedepending upon the event 1710 and action 1720 previously selected. Inthe example shown in FIG. 17, the option to highlight/flash an imagedisplay does not require further configuration, and, thus, N/A field1730 is blank and inactive in that the user cannot input options for N/Afield 1730. However, if the action selected was to send an alert, forexample, N/A field 1730 might become active and allow a user todesignate a recipient and/or recipient group to whom the alert should besent. If the user desires to send different kinds of alerts to differentrecipients or groups of recipients, multiple alerts could be configured,with each alert specifying a different action 1720 (e.g., send e-mailvs. send SMS) and/or a different recipient. As another example, the N/Afield 1730 could be used to specify where to log the occurrence of anevent, for example, if more than one database is available or if datafor more than one monitored person is stored in the availabledatabase(s).

As shown in FIG. 18, after an alert has been configured, theconfiguration view 1800 displayed may revert to display alert tab 1810,now showing a brief description of configured alert 1822 in alertswindow 1820. If additional alerts were configured, alerts window 1820might display a selectable list of configured alerts, includingconfigured alert 1822. Once configured, alerts may be edited or deletedusing buttons 1830 or 1840, respectively. Edit button 1830 may re-openthe configuration view shown in FIGS. 15-17, with the drop-down menusopen to receive alternate selections.

FIG. 19 shows a view 1900 of image data from multiple 3D motion sensorsmonitoring persons 1910A, 1910B, and 1910C, as such data might appear ona central monitoring primary display disclosed herein. The configurationwindow has been closed, providing an unobstructed view of monitoredpersons 1910A-C. Depending upon the configuration for the primarydisplay, each panel 1920, 1930, and 1940 may display live video,intermittent images (e.g., “still” shots from a video data feed), and/oraudio data for monitored persons 1910A, 1910B, and 1910C, respectively.

Having described an overview of embodiments of the present invention, anexemplary operating environment in which embodiments of the presentinvention may be implemented is described below in order to provide ageneral context for various aspects of the present invention. Referringnow to FIG. 20 in particular, an exemplary operating environment forimplementing embodiments of the present invention is shown anddesignated generally as computing device 2000. For instance, the variouscomputing systems disclosed herein, such as the computerized patientmonitoring and object recognition system, computerized communicationsystem, central video monitoring system, and/or computerized monitoringand communication system may be implemented as one or more devicesreflected by example computing device 2000. Computing device 2000 is butone example of a suitable computing environment and is not intended tosuggest any limitation as to the scope of use or functionality of theinvention. Neither should the computing device 2000 be interpreted ashaving any dependency or requirement relating to any one or combinationof components illustrated.

The invention may be described in the general context of computer codeor machine-useable instructions, including computer-executableinstructions such as program modules, being executed by a computer orother machine, such as a personal data assistant or other handhelddevice. Generally, program modules including routines, programs,objects, components, data structures, etc., refer to code that performparticular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. Theinvention may be practiced in a variety of system configurations,including hand-held devices, consumer electronics, general-purposecomputers, more specialty computing devices, etc. The invention may alsobe practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks areperformed by remote-processing devices that are linked through acommunications network.

With reference to FIG. 20, computing device 2000 includes a bus 2010that directly or indirectly couples the following devices: memory 2012,one or more processors 2014, one or more presentation components 2016,input/output (I/O) ports 2018, input/output components 2020, and anillustrative power supply 2022. Bus 2010 represents what may be one ormore busses (such as an address bus, data bus, or combination thereof).Bus 2010 may be any of several types of bus structures, including amemory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, and a local bus,using any of a variety of bus architectures. By way of example, and notlimitation, such architectures include Industry Standard Architecture(ISA) bus, Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA)bus, Video Electronic Standards Association (VESA) local bus, andPeripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus.

Although the various blocks of FIG. 20 are shown with lines for the sakeof clarity, in reality, delineating various components is not so clear,and metaphorically, the lines would more accurately be grey and fuzzy.For example, one may consider a presentation component such as a displaydevice to be an I/O component. Also, processors have memory. Theinventor recognizes that such is the nature of the art, and reiteratesthat the diagram of FIG. 20 is merely illustrative of an exemplarycomputing device that can be used in connection with one or moreembodiments of the present invention. Distinction is not made betweensuch categories as “workstation,” “server,” “laptop,” “hand-helddevice,” etc., as all are contemplated within the scope of FIG. 20 andreference to “computing device.”

Computing device 2000 typically includes a variety of computer-readablemedia. Computer-readable media can be any available media that can beaccessed by computing device 2000 and includes both volatile andnonvolatile media, and removable and non-removable media. By way ofexample, and not limitation, computer-readable media may comprisecomputer storage media and communication media. Computer storage mediaincludes both volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removablemedia implemented in any method or technology for storage of informationsuch as computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modulesor other data. Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to,RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM,digital versatile disks (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magneticcassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magneticstorage devices, or any other medium which can be used to store thedesired information and which can be accessed by computing device 2000.As used herein, computer storage media does not comprise non-transitorymedia such as signals per se. Communication media typically embodiescomputer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules orother data in a modulated data signal such as a carrier wave or othertransport mechanism and includes any information delivery media. Theterm “modulated data signal” means a signal that has one or more of itscharacteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode informationin the signal. By way of example, and not limitation, communicationmedia includes wired media such as a wired network or direct-wiredconnection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared and otherwireless media. Combinations of any of the above should also be includedwithin the scope of computer-readable media.

Memory 2012 includes computer-storage media in the form of volatileand/or nonvolatile memory. The memory may be removable, non-removable,or a combination thereof. Exemplary hardware devices include solid-statememory, hard drives, optical-disc drives, etc. Computing device 2000includes one or more processors that read data from various entitiessuch as memory 2012 or I/O components 2020. Presentation component(s)2016 present data indications to a user or other device. Exemplarypresentation components include a display device, speaker, printingcomponent, vibrating component, etc.

I/O ports 2018 allow computing device 2000 to be logically coupled toother devices including I/O components 2020, some of which may be builtin. Illustrative components include a keyboard, a pointing device(commonly referred to a “mouse”), a trackball, a touch pad, amicrophone, a 3D gesture recognition camera or motion sensor asdescribed herein, a joystick, a game pad, a satellite dish, a scanner, aprinter, a wireless device, etc. The I/O components 2020 may provide anatural user interface (NUI) that processes air gestures, voice, orother physiological inputs generated by a user. In some instances,inputs may be transmitted to an appropriate network element for furtherprocessing. An NUI may implement any combination of speech recognition,stylus recognition, facial recognition, biometric recognition, gesturerecognition both on screen and adjacent to the screen, air gestures,head and eye tracking, and touch recognition associated with a displayof the computing device 2000. The computing device 2000 may be equippedwith depth cameras, such as stereoscopic camera systems, infrared camerasystems, RGB camera systems, touchscreen technology, and combinations ofthese, for gesture detection and recognition. Additionally, thecomputing device 2000 may be equipped with accelerometers or gyroscopesthat enable detection of motion. The output of the accelerometers orgyroscopes may be provided to the display of the computing device 2000to render immersive augmented reality or virtual reality.

The computerized systems disclosed herein may operate in a computernetwork using logical connections to one or more remote computers havinga structure or function as described with respect to example computingdevice 2000. Such remote computers may be located at a variety oflocations, for example, but not limited to, hospitals and otherinpatient settings, veterinary environments, ambulatory settings,medical billing and financial offices, hospital administration settings,home health care environments, payer offices (e.g., insurancecompanies), home health care agencies, clinicians' offices and theclinician's home or the patient's own home or over the Internet.Clinicians may include, but are not limited to, a treating physician orphysicians, specialists such as surgeons, radiologists, cardiologists,and oncologists, emergency medical technicians, physicians' assistants,nurse practitioners, nurses, nurses' aides, pharmacists, dieticians,microbiologists, laboratory experts, laboratory technologists, geneticcounselors, researchers, veterinarians, students, and the like. Theremote computers may also be physically located in non-traditionalmedical care environments so that the entire health care community maybe capable of integration on the network. The remote computers may bepersonal computers, servers, routers, network PCs, peer devices, othercommon network nodes, or the like, and may include some or all of theelements described above in relation to the control server. The devicescan be personal digital assistants or other like devices.

Exemplary computer networks may include, without limitation, local areanetworks (LANs) and/or wide area networks (WANs). Such networkingenvironments are commonplace in offices, enterprise-wide computernetworks, intranets, and the Internet. When utilized in a WAN networkingenvironment, the control server may include a modem or other means forestablishing communications over the WAN, such as the Internet. In anetworked environment, program modules or portions thereof may be storedin the control server, in the database 118, or on any of the remotecomputers. For example, and not by way of limitation, variousapplication programs may reside on the memory associated with any one ormore of the remote computers. It will be appreciated by those ofordinary skill in the art that the network connections shown areexemplary and other means of establishing a communications link betweenthe computers may be utilized.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that this disclosure is well adaptedto attain all the ends and objects hereinabove set forth together withother advantages which are obvious and which are inherent to thestructure. It will be understood that certain features andsubcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference toother features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and iswithin the scope of the claims. Since many possible embodiments may bemade of the invention without departing from the scope thereof, it is tobe understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in theaccompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in alimiting sense.

What is claimed is:
 1. One or more non-transitory computer storage mediahaving embodied thereon instructions that, when executed by one or morecomputer processors, causes the processors to perform a methodcomprising: receiving image data from one or more 3D motion sensorslocated to provide the one or more 3D motion sensors with a view of anindividual to be monitored in a monitored area; based on informationreceived from the one or more 3D motion sensors, detecting an objectthat is prohibited within the monitored area, wherein detecting theobject that is prohibited comprises identifying the object using aplurality of reference points of the object; determining that a positionof the object is consistent with an imminent use by comparing a knownposition of an improper use of the object identified to the position ofthe object; and initiating an alert protocol upon determining that theposition of the object is consistent with the imminent use.
 2. Thecomputer storage media of claim 1, wherein the method performed by theone or more computer processors further comprises, upon detecting thatthe object is prohibited, detecting that the object is within athreshold proximity of one or more hands of a person within themonitored area.
 3. The computer storage media of claim 2, wherein theperson within the monitored area is the individual to be monitored, acaregiver, or a visitor.
 4. The computer storage media of claim 1,wherein identifying the object comprises comparing the plurality ofreference points of the object to reference points of known objectsstored within a database and identifying a match with a known object. 5.The computer storage media of claim 4, wherein detecting the object isprohibited further comprises, upon identifying the match with the knownobject, determining that the known object is prohibited for at least theindividual to be monitored.
 6. The computer storage media of claim 5,wherein the known object is determined to be prohibited for a facilityin which the individual to be monitored is located.
 7. The computerstorage media of claim 5, wherein determining the known object isprohibited for the individual to be monitored is based on informationreceived from an electronic health record associated with the individualto be monitored.
 8. The computer storage media of claim 1, whereindetermining that the position of the object is consistent with theimminent use comprises determining relative locations of at least two ormore reference points of the object and comparing the relative locationswith known relative locations associated with the imminent use of theobject.
 9. The computer storage media of claim 8, wherein determiningrelative locations of at least two or more reference points of theobject comprises determining locations of at least two or more referencepoints of the object relative to each other.
 10. A computerized methodfor detecting prohibited objects, the method comprising: receiving imagedata from one or more 3D motion sensors located to provide the one ormore 3D motion sensors with a view of an individual to be monitored in amonitored area; based on information received from the one or more 3Dmotion sensors, detecting an object that is prohibited within themonitored area, wherein detecting the object that is prohibitedcomprises identifying the object using a plurality of reference pointsof the object; identifying a pattern of the plurality of referencepoints of the object and a relative location for an imminent use of theobject; detecting that a position of the object is consistent with theimminent use by comparing the pattern and the relative location; andinitiating an alert protocol upon determining that the position of theobject is consistent with the imminent use.
 11. The computerized methodof claim 10 further comprising, upon detecting that the object isprohibited, detecting that the object is within a threshold proximity ofa person within the monitored area.
 12. The computerized method of claim11, wherein identifying the relative location further comprisesdetermining locations of the plurality reference points of the objectrelative to locations of reference points on a skeleton of the personwho is within the threshold proximity of the object.
 13. Thecomputerized method of claim 11, wherein the threshold proximity isbased on an identification zone automatically established based on apredetermined distance from the person within the monitored area,wherein the person within the monitored area comprises one of theindividual to be monitored, a visitor, or a caregiver.
 14. Thecomputerized method of claim 10, further comprising: determining theposition of the object is consistent with the imminent use for apredetermined duration of time; and initiating an alert in response todetermining that the position of the object is consistent with theimminent use for the predetermined duration of time.
 15. A system fordetecting a prohibited object within a monitored area, the systemcomprising: one or more 3D motion sensors located to provide the one ormore 3D motion sensors with a view of an individual to be monitored, theone or more 3D motion sensors configured to capture a series of imagesof the monitored area; a computerized monitoring system communicativelycoupled to the one or more 3D motion sensors, a processor of thecomputerized monitoring system configured to utilize informationreceived from the one or more 3D motion sensors to: detect an objectthat is prohibited in the monitored area using one or more referencepoints of the object; determining that a position of the object isconsistent with an imminent use by comparing a known position of theobject identified to the position of the object; and initiating an alertprotocol upon determining that the position of the object is consistentwith the imminent use.
 16. The system of claim 15 further comprising acomputerized communication system communicatively coupled to thecomputerized monitoring system, the computerized communication systemconfigured to: receive a determination from the computerized monitoringsystem that the position of the object detected is consistent with theimminent use; and transmit one or more alerts indicating at least thatthe prohibited object has been detected.
 17. The system of claim 16,wherein the computerized monitoring system is configured to transmit analert to the individual to be monitored.
 18. The system of claim 17,wherein the computerized monitoring system is further configured to,after the alert has been transmitted to the individual to be monitored,determine whether a response indicating corrective action has been givenbased on information subsequently received from the one or more 3Dmotion sensors.
 19. The system of claim 18, wherein the responseindicating corrective action includes one or more of an audible responsefrom the individual to be monitored, a gesture indicative of compliance,the object being moved beyond a threshold proximity to a hand of aperson within the monitored area, and the object being moved out of theposition consistent with the imminent use.
 20. The system of claim 15further comprising a central monitoring system, wherein the alertprotocol comprises the central monitoring system receiving image datacaptured by the one or more 3D motion sensors and displaying the imagedata.